The Greatest Fear of the Nightmare King

Chapter 1

Darkness. That's the first thing I remember. It was pitch black and it was cold...and I was scared.

I didn't know why or what exactly I feared, only that I could feel it eating at my mind and crawling at my skin. At first, it was painful..., but then it was intoxicating. The stench of terror that was not entirely my own was overpowering my senses and it felt far better to retreat into the fears of others, rather than to dwell on my own. Over time, I found comfort in the power I held over everyone, rejoicing in feeling and seeing just how much the fear would affect them.

I kept myself busy. I didn't want to pay attention to the golden locket I'd placed in my pocket. I didn't dare to think of how, once I'd made myself comfortable in my dark cave, I hid that locket in a special corner of shadows for...safe keeping.

No. I would wander the world and strike terror in the heart of every person, without thought to my lapses of judgement during which I would look upon the locket in a mixture of hate, fear, curiosity, and something else I still could not identify.

All was well, and I could run away so easily from my fears...that was, until the Man in the Moon sent his 'Guardians' to do his dirty work.

That was when everything started to fall apart. That was when people began to halt their beliefs in me and quickly stopped being quite as susceptible to my power. That was when children and adults alike would no longer fall victim to my grim tales of monsters and demons.

That was when I no longer had their fear to distract me from my own.

The Guardians left me alone in the darkness of my cave, but only as soon as they were sure that not a single soul could see me any longer. All I had left was my fear, my anger, this blasted locket, and my hate for the Guardians who had taken away everything.

But that was a long time ago.

I thought I'd finally escaped from my prison of nightmares, and even had the ludicrous thought that I'd found someone who understood, but now I see that hope is utter nonsense and should not be trusted. Hope is a lie you tell yourself to feel better. Jack Frost is just like the rest of them. He may have experienced some small drop of the pain and fear of not being believed in, but he has obviously not felt the agony of fearing nothing but yourself.

Now I am once again left to suffer in the darkness of my cage. Sometimes, it's not quite so bad. Some days, I can even sense a child or two somewhere who is being told the tale of the fearsome Bogeyman, and it gets me through the hours without losing too much of my tired mind.

Today, it's bad. The nightmares have transformed themselves into endless swirls of darkness and glowing red eyes. They're watching me calculatingly as they tear at either my body or my mind, I can't tell. I've heard...or...imagined distant screams and quiet whimpers coming from the voice of a child, but the sounds are just too far off for me to cling to.

-

It's been nearly two years since I became a Guardian, but still, after asking a thousand and one times, the other Guardians refuse to tell me anything about who Pitch was before he became the Bogeyman.

Did they really think I wouldn't at least ask? I mean, that's kind of important, isn't it?

Sometimes, I wonder if maybe he was sincere back in Antarctica. Maybe he did have a family once. Maybe he misses them. How would I know if no one tells me? I guess it isn't really my business, but I can't be the first Guardian to wonder why he's so evil, right? He was a kid too, once. He must've been.

So what changed? Why would the other guys avoid my questions about it?

I know this is probably a not overly great idea, but it'll be fine. Pitch'll probably be all bark and no bite at this point anyway. The other Guardians don't need to worry so much about every little thing that involves Pitch.

Of course, I got about a million objections when I first suggested this to them, but I managed. The fact that the Man in the Moon himself told us that something was up with Pitch was helpful, but also a little weird. Not just because the Man in the Moon doesn't talk much, but also because he showed that I have to be the one to confront him. That's just really confusing.

Why does the Man in the Moon always have to give us weird signals?

When I finally reach the clearing, I find just what I was hoping for. A broken bed frame, and a hole in the ground.

I need to brace myself before I go down. I can't let him affect me like he did last time I was down there.

Here goes.